Any
approximately $540.00 - $660.00/Month
8
Aug 5, 2026
We make long-form anthology videos about history's darkest corners — think Trust Me Bro, Chat History, Sideprojects. Every Friday we publish a new 22-minute video with 12 self-contained stories. Your job is the thumbnail that stops someone mid-scroll and makes them curious enough to click.
WHAT YOU'RE MAKING:
One thumb-stopping thumbnail per week. 1280×720. Flat vector illustration.
You're not making ads — you're making something people recognize instantly
in their sidebar.
STYLE GUIDE:
• Three character illustration triptych (centre is the reactor, flanks show
the threat/variation)
• Pure white heads, thick black outlines (~12–14px)
• High-saturation gradients OR desaturated muted scenes (depending on video mood)
• Bold all-caps sans-serif at the top (Archivo Black energy)
• Red is your only accent colour (for blood, glowing effects, timeline devices)
• Heavy vignetting (dark on all corners)
• Zero branding — no logo, no watermark, no channel name. The style IS the brand.
TIMELINE DEVICE (for videos with multiple eras):
Red line across the bottom with three tick marks. Labels under each:
"STONE AGE / DARK AGE / PRESENT". This shows the range of time without
needing to cram all 12 eras into one frame.
THE REALITY:
This is NOT free-form creative work. You're following a visual system.
If you want complete artistic freedom, this isn't it. If you want to
master high-CTR design and work on content that gets millions of views,
you're in the right place.
SPEED:
Monday script ? Thursday final files.
Two concepts per week, unlimited revisions until locked.
If you can't turn around concepts in 48 hours, pass.
BUDGET:
$25–75 per thumbnail
First one: $30–75 (building your character library + asset base)
After: $25–55 (reusing characters, colours, systems = faster)
Paid test: $30 for 2 concepts on the first video
HOW TO APPLY:
— 5 YouTube thumbnails in portfolio (with CTR or view notes)
— 3 short answers (will be asked in DM)
— Your rate + turnaround for 2 concepts
— Include the word "vignette" in your application
DON'T APPLY IF YOU:
• Only have gaming / anime / cute animal / niche community thumbnails
• Haven't designed YouTube thumbnails before
• Don't use Adobe Illustrator
• Need more than 3 days turnaround
• Think brand consistency = killing creativity